


O Rachel, Wherefore Art Thou My Student? (Thomas Hunt POV Chapters of O Thomas Hunt, Wherefore Art Thou My Professor?)

by moodyvalentine



Series: O Thomas Hunt, Wherefore Art Thou My Professor? [2]
Category: Hollywood U: Rising Star
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-10-14
Updated: 2019-04-06
Packaged: 2019-07-16 03:42:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,721
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16077632
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/moodyvalentine/pseuds/moodyvalentine
Summary: Select chapters of "O Thomas Hunt, Wherefore Art Thou My Professor?" but from Hunt's perspective.





	1. Lenience | Thomas Hunt POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 6: Lenience of "O Thomas Hunt, Wherefore Art Thou My Professor?" but from Hunt's perspective.  
> Lance called Hunt because a certain student of his has been breaking some rules...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Because I feel like there's a thing you should know about that Rachel doesn't know about... and I'm not sure if I wanna let her find out. Also, not technically his POV because it's in 3rd person, but you know.

He was just about to turn the key in the lock after leaving his office when he heard the phone ring inside. For a moment, he debated ignoring it, but his first class was not set to start for another hour. He sighed and opened the door to pick up.

"Professor Hunt, Professor Hunt, I need to report a student," a boy said. Thomas did not recognize the voice. Then again, most of his students weren't worth his time, so he certainly wasn't going to remember their voices.

"Which student do you need to report? And for what?" Thomas was almost sure this was a joke. Students didn't usually report each other. With the exception of Bianca Stone, of course. The entitled heiress, who couldn't take people not liking her. Just a few days ago, she'd reported someone to the board. A young woman named Rachel Fields. Thomas didn't have any trouble believing that Miss Fields was a troublemaker when he first saw her. But then there was that incident at the coffee shop... he saw the two of them argue, and Rachel wasn't the one getting violent... He forced the thoughts out of his head.

"Can you come down to the... um... filming studio... thing? Someone's in there even though Bianca booked it for the whole morning."

Thomas pinched the bridge of his nose. "Fine. I'll be there in ten minutes."

He still wasn't sure if this had been a serious call or not so he certainly was not in a hurry to get there. Still, he was curious. He knew only one person who would stand up to Bianca and her entourage even if it was stupid to do so and most likely exactly what they wanted.

When Thomas got to the studio, a young man was already waiting. Lance Sergio, one of Bianca's lackeys. "They're in there. Filming. I swear we booked it all, they--"

Thomas didn't pay him any attention but walked past him to see what was transpiring inside. Indeed, the people inside were young Miss Fields and some friends. He believed to recognize one of them from his Hollywood 101 class, but he wasn't entirely sure.

"Oh, Eve. Naïve little Eve," a young brunette said to Rachel. "You really did it. You betrayed your husband... and your religion. I didn't think you had it in you."

"Wh-what? You... you put these thoughts in my mind!" Rachel said with desperation clearly audible in her voice, clearly visible on her face. Thomas hadn't expected her to be all that good at acting, but what he saw was... he would never call it anything but passable out loud, but he recognized talent when he saw it.

It took him a little while to understand what he was looking at. When he finally realized, he was even more surprised. Not only had they managed to turn the absolute garbage he had given them into something semi-decent, but they were giving it their best. Even Rachel, which almost made him smile. Almost.

Thomas looked around to see if Lance was around. When he realized that he wasn't, he sat down on a chair and watched them act out the noticeably improved screenplay of _God Forbade It_. The moronic little story he'd found when scouring the internet for atrocities to give to students just like young Miss Fields. Students he needed to push to determine whether or not they were worth his time. As much as he didn't want to admit it, she very much was.

He waited there, watching, until he heard the boy he thought he'd recognized shout, "And that's a wrap!"

Thomas got up as the young man turned to Rachel to say, "Congrats, Rachel. The hardest part is over."

Even though he now knew there was more to her than just the defiant little brat he'd seen till now, he had no choice but to discipline her for breaking the university's rules. "Not so fast," he said as he emerged from the shadows. Rachel looked at him with wide eyes. "The hardest part, I would assume, is just beginning."

"What do you mean?" the boy asked, but Thomas was fixated on Rachel.

"Miss Fields. When Mr Sergio told me about a student breaking rules, I had no doubt in my mind you would have something to do with it," he said, even though it wasn't entirely the truth. Nonetheless, the call had made him think of her, and he could have certainly imagined her being involved had he not thought the entire thing was a joke. 

"We were just doing the stupid project you--"

Thomas cut her off before she could say anything else to dig a hole for herself. Calling the project he'd assigned her stupid wasn't so bad, but he'd rather not find out what else she had to say or he might really want to discipline her, potentially in a way that would go on her record, causing her immediate expulsion. "Do not make this worse for yourself. You're here even though another student had booked the studio. Do you not understand why this system is in place?"

Usually, he would have been mad. The booking system existed so there would be no fights about who would film where when. But, this time, he felt differently. Maybe because he knew Bianca didn't have the right intentions when booking the studio. More importantly, he knew it had been her plan to have her minion call him so Rachel would get in trouble. He wasn't going to be used as a weapon in a feud between students.

"Bianca just wanted to keep me from finishing the project! She already distracted Simon, and now--"

"You're a bit self-absorbed, don't you think? Miss Stone had her own film to work on." How naïve she was. Had Bianca wanted to keep her from filming, she would have certainly acted differently -- arranging for one of them to be in an accident or something similar. Thomas wouldn't have put that past her.

"But she wasn't here! And she definitely wouldn't have needed the entire studio!"

Naturally, Rachel still didn't let it go. Of course, he understood, but he was getting frustrated. "I don't want to hear it. Pack your things and get out of here."

She huffed but motioned for everyone to pack up their things. They did and walked towards the exit. It felt wrong to Thomas not to say any more. He needed to make it clear that she couldn't just break the rules and walk all over him.

"And, Miss Fields?" he called after her. She turned around. "Next time, I won't be so lenient."

She watched him for a moment, making him wonder what exactly she was looking at. After a short while, she mouthed, "Thank you."

So he had made himself clear. She knew that he was doing her a favour. Good. Maybe she wasn't a lost cause, after all.

He certainly hoped that she wasn't. If she always acted as well as she had today, he might one day want to cast her in a movie. If he eventually got back to making movies, that was.


	2. Irrelevant | Thomas Hunt POV

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Chapter 9: Irrelevant of "O Thomas Hunt, Wherefore Art Thou My Professor?" but from Hunt's perspective.  
> The night of the Freshman Awards Show... and a certain student kept pushing Thomas' buttons.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I often write chapters from other characters' POVs anyway because it helps me understand them better so I figured I might as well publish them.

Every semester, he had to endure it: the Freshman Award Show. It was the reason he never wanted to teach Hollywood 101 again. Hosting it was the worst part of his job -- or at least one of the worst parts. However, he didn't have much of a choice.

Straightening his tie, making sure he looked presentable, he grabbed the cards from his desk and headed to the theatre. He hadn't seen any of the projects yet -- save for the scene he'd seen Rachel Fields and her friends perform -- and he didn't particularly look forward to seeing them. They were all made by Freshman with precious little experience. All he could hope for was for them not to make a fool out of him.

Still lost in thought, Thomas reached the theatre. Before he could go inside, though, he noticed a young woman running out of the building, towards a park bench. Even in the dark, he recognised her immediately. It was none other than Rachel Fields. She looked absolutely stunning -- her gold dress, which was just sexy enough while still remaining tasteful, sent a wave of inappropriate thoughts through Thomas' mind. Yet it was clear that she was in distress.

While his head was debating whether or not he should talk to her, his feet had already started walking. He came up behind her and before he could even say anything, she spun around. "Didn't I tell you to get us some seats? I swear, I--"

She stopped mid-sentence, presumably when she realised it was her professor who stood in front of her, not whoever she thought it was.

"A little irritable tonight, are we?" Thomas said.

"Just... the nerves."

He hadn't expected her to say that. During every interaction they'd had, she had been quite confident -- cocky, even. "I must say, you did not strike me as the type to get nervous," he said, an eyebrow raised.

"That's because you don't know me at all," she replied and rolled her eyes, turning back around to walk away from him.

Thomas tried to convince himself that it would be best to just leave her alone. He certainly didn't _want_ to follow her. Yet that was exactly what he did. "You made it seem like you believed in what you created. Is that no longer true?"

She seemed just as surprised that he stayed as he was. "No, it is..." she said as she sat down on the bench nearby, leaving Thomas to be unsure of what to do.

He briefly considered sitting down next to her but decided against it. He'd be going inside in just a few seconds, after all. "Then you have no reason to be nervous. Get back inside before anyone notices--"

Before he could finish his sentence, Rachel interrupted him. "I do have a reason! Just because I think I did a good job doesn't mean others will, too."

And once again, she'd said something he didn't expect. Except this time, it was a rather disappointing surprise. With a scowl, he shook his head at her. "And now you care what the general public thinks? You truly manage to fall below my expectations every time."

He was already walking towards the theatre, somewhat frustrated with her for a reason he couldn't discern, when she said something else. "I care about _your_ opinion."

Stopping dead in his tracks, he wondered if he'd heard wrong. "What?" he asked as he turned back to her. She'd never shown that she cared. She'd only disrespected him -- more times than one would expect, given the short amount of time she'd been at the university.

"I just mean... I need good grades if I don't want to get... expelled. And I... I can't have you, a member of the board, hate me," she stuttered.

Hate her? Thomas wasn't sure how he felt about the peculiar young woman, but one thing he did know was that he didn't hate her. So all he could do was let out a chuckle as he came up with the most blatant lie he'd ever told. "I do not hate you, Miss Fields. You're far too irrelevant to me."

As soon as the words had left his mouth, he regretted them. It may have been the right thing to say, but the look on Rachel's face as she heard them was -- for lack of a better word -- heartbreaking. 

He was about to apologise and tell her that he didn't mean it in an offensive way at all, but she ran past him, back into the building. He was left standing there, dumbfounded. While he realised what he said was hurtful, he hadn't expected Rachel to be so... fragile. She'd always seemed rather tough.

After a few minutes, Thomas walked inside as well, and stepped onto the stage to start the show.

Even though hosting it was a tedious task, he was grateful he at least got to do something to take his mind off the conversation with Rachel. Until she and the boy she'd paired up with walked onto the stage.

The way she strode towards the mic with determination, Thomas knew this wouldn't go over well. And he was quite certain it was entirely his fault.

"Remember how Professor Hunt said he wouldn't assign us a project for this so we wouldn't blame him if it turned out terrible?" As she spoke, the boy next to her tried to take the microphone from her. He, naturally, wasn't successful. Rachel was a force to be reckoned with and, clearly, she wouldn't let anyone stop her once she set her mind to something. While Thomas admired that, he knew he had to step in. She'd already embarrassed him enough and he wasn't going to let her do so any further. "Well, guess what, we had the displeasure of getting our assignment from him personally. Now, I am proud of what we made of it, but I'd just like to say--"

Once he reached the centre of the stage, he ripped the microphone out of Rachel's hand. "That's quite enough, Miss Fields," he said, keeping one of his hands on the mic so the entire audience wouldn't hear. "What do you think you are doing? Are you trying to get expelled?"

As angry as he was with her for embarrassing him, he was far more worried for her. She was being a little brat and, knowing how many professors sat in the audience, he knew it wouldn't help her case. Not that he cared. He simply didn't feel like her talent should go to waste.

But she didn't look angry. In fact, she didn't show any emotion whatsoever. She simply shrugged.

With a shake of his head, Thomas handed the microphone to Rachel's partner, who was clearly overwhelmed. He said something about the film, but Thomas couldn't hear. He was focused on Rachel, who just stood there awkwardly.

As the speech was over, and the film started to play, Thomas grabbed Rachel by the arm before she could go back to her seat and pulled her backstage, to a small office that had once been his. He shut the door behind them, not even bothering to turn on the lights before he started yelling.

"Are you completely out of your mind?"

She didn't look at him. She didn't even speak. She simply shrugged, again.

"Did I not tell you not to embarrass me?" he asked, still far too loud, in an attempt to at least get her to speak.

"Why would I care if I embarrassed you?" she snapped. "Maybe you're irrelevant to me, too."

He let out a sigh. Of course, he'd already suspected this was the reason for her behaviour. Nonetheless, it was quite immature. "Is that what this is about?"

Again, she only shrugged. Her unwillingness to speak to him got on his nerves. _She_ got on his nerves.

"Miss Fields, that was not personal. You're simply a student. I have no reason to hate you. Strongly dislike you, especially after what just happened, yes. All I meant was that you should stop flattering yourself by thinking I care enough to hate you."

She rolled her eyes at him, and despite feeling the urge to scold her for it, he didn't and let her speak. "Whatever you say, Professor."

He didn't know what else to say. Clearly, she wasn't going to have a reasonable conversation with him. Looking out of the window, he wondered why he even tried. She was a child who was, quite obviously, never going to listen to him. She'd told him earlier she cared about his opinion but she didn't act like she did. 

"I'm sorry," she whispered after a while. "I really fucked up, didn't I?"

He didn't say anything. She was right. She had fucked up. But what was he to say? He knew he was partly at fault for her lashing out. She was just a college student, still trying to figure out her place in the world. And he'd told her she didn't matter.

"It seems your film has ended. You should get back to your partner," he simply said and led her back to the theatre.


End file.
